hydrarchist submits "Whilst our values diverge radically from those advnaced by bthe Economist, weekly epistle from the church of free-trade dogma, it is noetheless interesting to read their latest attack on the arch clown Berluska. Note that this is the third vituperatoive of this type in two years. Clashes amidst the dominant class how are you..... Berlusconi's reposne is that he has not ime to read the article but his lawyers will respond. He of course is too busy 'looking after his responsibilities' to pay attention to those who 'fear his new Italy' (sic).

Economist on Berlusconi
Dear Mr Berlusconi...

Jul 31st 2003 From The Economist print edition
Why we are sending an open letter to the Italian prime minister
TO HIS many other talents, Silvio Berlusconi has recently added that of ironist. The Italian prime minister entered the role of president of the European Union's Council of Ministers with a bang, by likening a German member of the European Parliament to a Nazi-era concentration camp guard. Many failed to see the joke. And the resulting imbroglio with the German government had a paradoxical effect: it distracted attention from the very accusation that the German MEP had been noisily making, namely that Mr Berlusconi has exploited his parliamentary majority in Italy to put himself beyond the reach of the law.
For that is indeed what he has done. Dogged by a series of judicial investigations and court cases when he entered office in 2001, Mr Berlusconi has managed to defeat the prosecutors and the courts. He secured the downgrading of the charge of false accounting for private companies, with retrospective effect, thus making accusations against him barred under the statute of limitations. He tried to change the rules on the admissibility of documents obtained from across the border in Switzerland, and tried to get the jurisdiction of his big remaining criminal trial moved. Finally, having failed with those measures he managed to bring in a law making Italy's prime minister, along with the country's other top officials, immune from prosecution during their time in office. As a democratically elected leader, with grave and onerous responsibilities to the people, Mr Berlusconi argued that he should not be made subject to the indignity of a trial. His justice minister, Roberto Castelli, went even further, causing a furore within the governing coalition last week by trying to block a judicial investigation into alleged tax fraud at Mr Berlusconi's biggest media company. (This week he was forced to relent.) It is beyond the prime minister's dignity even to be investigated.

Italian comrades submit

Following the racist round-up of immigrants by the carabinieri on Monday 30th June at Piazza Risorgimento in Pordenone (north-east Italy), we, together with other activists and anti-racists, organized an inter-ethnic street party with music, speeches, food and films for the following Saturday (5th July).

The protest, which was peaceful and colourful and which included
the particpation of many immigrants, served to demonstrate our determined opposition to the Bossi-Fini Law and also to retake public spaces and areas for socializing.

Everything was going smoothly with many taking advantage of the open mike, when a serious incident took place - through a form of practice which is by now commonplace in the North-East [of Italy.

While chatting to other comrades, one comrade from the Circolo Libertario E. Zapata was head-butted in the face out of the blue by one of the "disobbedienti" who had just finished talking on the mike.

Anonymous Kumquat submits this campaign press release:

The Kucinich for President Campaign takes a big step forward today with
the announcement of "Feminists for Kucinich." Eight diverse feminist
writers and organizers have initiated a statement in support of
Kucinich, which will be widely circulated to attract new supporters.

nolympics submits:

"Secret History of the IRA"

Anthony McIntyre, The Blanket

Anthony McIntyre is a former republican prisoner from Belfast, a founder of the Republican Writers Group and a harsh critic of Sinn Fein and its leadership (from the left). Here he recounts a lecture given by Ed Moloney in Galway. Maloney wrote A Secret History of the IRA, published last year. The book provides a narrative of the peace process and IRA cease fire at odds with both the IRA version and that of the relevant states. The central argument of the book suggests that Gerry Adams had been involved in negotiations towards a ceasefire with the British as early as 1986, and that those negotiations led to the IRA and Sinn Fein abandoning the central tenets of modern republicanism, (refusal to recognise the northern state, the right of the Irish people as a whole to self determination not subject to loyalist veto, the right of the Irish people to resist occupation under arms, etc).

This piece was published by The Blanket, "a journal of protest and dissent" from the north of Ireland. Read it at the link.

rncnotwelcome.org writes:

We have just launched a new site called RNC Not Welcome.



The site is meant to be a resource for local activists and for people planning to travel here to protest, disrupt [etc.] the Republican National Convention in September 2004.

ya basta writes


"DISOBBEDIENTI COMMUNICATION FROM EVIAN



Like in Genoa 2 years ago, the forces of order have responded with a military use of police, and only chance has saved the life of our brother Martin Shaw to whom goes all of our solidarity. As we write this, news of mass arrests comes from Losanna.

hydrarchist writes:

"The following interview is from issue 19 of the New Left Review, and is provided for the purpose of understanding the enemy better. Enmity after all is possible only towards one we actually know. The discussion ranges from the history and culture of LeMonde Diplomatique, the role of ATTAC and LMD in the organization of the World Social Forum and the current political and intellectual topography in France. "

The founder of the single most successful movement against neoliberal globalization, and architect of the World Social Forum,
discusses the French origins and international growth of ATTAC. Its connexions with Le Monde diplomatique and vision of the battles against financial markets and privatization to come.

"On the ATTAC"

Bernard Cassen

What are the origins of the movement that has developed so strongly in France against neoliberal globalization?

Lula and the Markets

Gwynne Dyer

George Soros, the world's leading currency speculator, told a
Brazilian newspaper in August that the 170 million Brazilians simply
wouldn't be allowed to have Labour Party leader Luiz Inacio 'Lula' da
Silva as their president. The higher his standing rose in the opinion
polls, the fiercer would be the speculative attacks on Brazil's currency,
the real. If he actually won the presidency, the markets' reaction would
be so negative that the country would have to declare a moratorium on its
huge $260 billion foreign debt.

The Marijuana Reform Party of NY MRP writes:

Our petition drive was successful and the MRP will be on the New York
statewide ballot in the November election. We look forward to a campaign to
reach the 50,000 vote threshold in order to become an official political
party in New York State.

Most of the major rock radio stations have welcomed us to their morning
show and we hope to be on the air with all of them one or two more times
before the election. In addition, all of the other press outlets that have
covered the campaign so far have said they will give us more coverage
before the election. For a complete list of media so far, check the MRP
News page on our web site
(MRP).

How can you help? Our main needs are the following:

(1) money -- either direct donations or fundraising parties/events (any size)

(2) photocopies of campaign literature and fliers

(3) distributing literature and fliers throughout the state

(4) making calls to radio talk shows to talk about our campaign

(5) writing letters to the editor of your local newspaper

We hope to make two upstate campaign swings that will include Buffalo,
Rochester, Syracuse, and Albany, with a visit to the morning show in the
studio of WPDH FM in Poughkeepsie (we also will go to visit the morning
show in the studio at WBAB FM in Long Island). The tentative timing for
these two campaign tours is September 23-October 1st and October 21-28.
In Buffalo, Rochester, and Albany we will also visit the studios for the
morning shows of the main rock stations there.



If you live in any of the four above cities and can help organize or would
like to attend a campaign event, please reply to this E-mail.



We are also looking for medical marijuana patients in the above 4 cities
and New York city for press events/conferences. If you are a legitimate
medical marijuana patient and would like to participate in any such event,
or if you know a patient who would like to participate, please reply to
this message, providing any details and you name and phone number.

The Green Party of the United States writes:

GAY CAUCUS EXPANDS IN THE GREEN PARTY; OTHER CAUCUSES ORGANIZE

MEDIA RELEASE

For immediate release: Wednesday, July 31, 2002

Lavender Green Caucus, winning accreditation in the Green Party, challenges
gay support for Democrats

WASHINGTON, DC -- The Lavender Green Caucus, representing gay, lesbian,
bisexual, and transgendered (GLBT) members of the Green Party, has emerged
as a national force in the Green Party of the United States, after becoming
the first caucus to gain a voting seat on the party's Coordinating
Committee. Other caucuses, representing African-American and Latino Greens,
are also planning to win seats on the Coordinating Committee, the party's
central decision-making body which includes delegates from 39 states.